BIF CFP^® Education Program Syllabus

Introduction to Financial Planning familiarizes students with the tools that will be used to complete future coursework. The introductory course focuses on financial calculations, accounting, statistics, and economics, while also providing a broad overview of the entire financial planning process. Topics from the Program’s subsequent courses are introduced here and their place in the larger financial planning process is explained.

Course Content Modules:

• Basic Economic Concepts 
• Financial Calculations 
• Business Law 
• Buying vs. Leasing 
• Function, Purpose, and Regulation of Financial Institutions 
• The Financial Planning Process 
• CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Practice Standards 
• CFP Board's Procedural Rules 
• Personal and Business Financial Statements 
• Emergency Fund Planning 
• Credit and Debt Management 
• Life Cycle Planning 
• Educational Planning 
• Monetary Settlements and Special Circumstances 
• Financial Services Industry Regulation Requirements 
• Fiduciary standard and application 
• Cash flow management 
• Gift/income tax strategies 
• Client and planner attitudes, values, and biases 
• Sources of money conflict 
• Principles of counseling 
• General principles of effective communication 
• Crisis event with severe consequences 

Practice Questions: Over 300

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• HP 12C Financial Calculator
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Risk Management & Insurance Planning addresses life, disability, and medical incurance, including how insurance rates are developed, what types of contracts are available, how to read insurance proposals, and how life insurance is used in financial planning. Students learn about propperty and casualty insurance, including homeowners', liability, and auto insurance. Other topics include group life and health insurance plans.

Course Content Modules: 

• • Principles of Insurance 
  • Evaluation and Analysis of Risk Exposures 
  • Legal Aspects of Insurance 
  • Property and Casualty Insurance 
  • General Business Liability 
  • Health Insurance 
  • Disability Income Insurance 
  • Long-Term Care Insurance 
  • Life Insurance 
  • Viatical Settlements 
  • Insurance Needs 
  • Taxation of Insurance 
  • Insurance Policy Selection 
  • Insurance Company Selection 
    

Practice Questions: Over 150

Investment Planning explores the securities market, sources of information, risk/return, debt and equities, stocks, bonds, options, futures, and security analysis, and culminates with learning portfolio construction and analysis. The course is designed to help students understand how money and capital markets operate, how to conduct investment and financial research, and how to evaluate the risks and rates of return for various types of investment vehicles.

Course Content Modules: 

• • Fixed Income Securities 
  • Equities 
  • Pooled Investments 
  • Derivatives, Insurance Securities, and Other Investments 
  • Investment Risks 
  • Measures of Investment Returns 
  • Time Influence on Valuation 
  • Valuation of Bonds and Stocks 
  • Portfolio Management and Measurements 
  • Formula Investing and Investment Strategies 
  • Asset Allocation and Portfolio Diversification 
  • Efficient Market Theory 
  • Asset Pricing Models & Behavioral Biases 
  • Buying and Selling Securities 
  • Hedging and Option Strategies 
  • Tax Efficient Investing 
  • Taxation of Investment Vehicles 

Practice Questions: Over 200

Tax Planning explores how state and Federal taxation impact different types of businesses, including sole proprietorships, partnerships, and corporations. It provides students with an in-depth look at various tax-related aspects of investments, insurance, annuities, and securities. The course introduces students to other special tax considerations, including charitable giving, sale of assets and more.

Course Content Modules:

• • Income Tax Law Fundamentals
  • Gross Income
  • Income Tax Calculations
  • Tax Characteristics of Entities
  • Basis
  • Cost Recovery Concepts
  • Tax Consequences on Sales of Assets
  • Like-Kind Exchanges and Involuntary Conversions
  • Income Taxation of Trusts and Estates
  • Passive Activity
  • Charitable Contributions and Deductions
  • Tax Implications of Changing Circumstances
  • Tax Accounting Methods
  • Tax Compliance
  • Alternative Minimum Tax
  • Tax Management Techniques

Practice Questions: Over 300

Retirement Planning and Employee Benefits is taught in two sections. The retirement planning section covers tax-deferred retirement plans, IRAs, and nonqualified plans. The employee benefits section covers Social Security and Medicare, civil service, group life, disability, dental, and health insurance. Students also learn to plan, implement and monitor individual and business-sponsored retirement plans. The course teaches how to perform retirement needs analysis, which regulatory issues surround retirement planning and benefits, and how tax issues impact these decisions.

Course Content Modules:

• • Retirement Needs Analysis
  • Qualified Retirement Plans
  • Non-Qualified Plans
  • Government 457 Plans
  • Other Tax-Advantaged Retirement Plans
  • Investment Considerations for Retirement Plans
  • Distribution Rules, Alternatives and Taxation
  • Plan Selection for Businesses
  • Employee Benefit Plans
  • Employer/Employee Insurance Arrangements
  • Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
  • Regulatory Considerations
  • Eldercare and special needs planning
  • Types of retirement plans
  • Key factors affecting plan selection for businesses
  • Distribution rules and taxation
  • Retirement income and distributi

Practice Questions: Over 250

Estate Planning addresses gift, estate, and generation-skipping transfer taxes, at the state and Federal levels. It covers planning techniques used to reduce tax impacts on transfers of wealth. It explores the effects of gifts and bequests, including the limitations on income shifting imposed by the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Non-tax aspects of estate planning, including the estate planning process, wills, trusts, durable powers of attorney, powers of appointment, and probate procedure are also studied.

Financial Planning Capstone Course is a competency-based course that utilizes the knowledge obtained in the previous six financial planning courses to demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of financial planning theory through effective application in the creation and presentation of a financial plan for hypothetical clients. Effective oral and written communication must be employed in conjunction with proper analytical techniques while crafting a plan that satisfies the client’s goals and objectives within the framework of the economic, political and regulatory environments. Utilization of the CFP Board Financial Planning Practice Standards is strongly emphasized. Individuals that complete this course have proven their ability to apply the financial planning process to real-life situations, as well as their ability to communicate their recommendations to a client in an efficient and professional manner.

• 3 Mini Cases: These cases have abbreviated fact sets. You will encounter several similarly structured small cases on your Board Exam. Each mini-case is focused on a specific topic, which is also true of the small cases on the Board Exam. The 3 mini-cases are each completed by passing a brief 4-question quiz.
  
  
• 3 Full Cases: These cases have full fact sets. You will encounter at least one similarly structured full case on your Board Exam. Each full case is focused on a specific topic, which is also true of the full cases on the Board Exam. The 3 full cases are each completed by passing a 10-question quiz.
  
  
• 1 Final Case with 8 total prompts: This is where everything you have learned comes together. The final case provides 7 prompts that each require a written response and 1 prompt that requires an audio response. Consider both the specific objectives of the case's subjects and CFP® Board's Financial Planning Practice Standards. while responding to each prompt.